Which of the following indicators helps incident responders detect cloud security incidents?

A large number of requests for the same file type can be a critical indicator for incident responders in the context of cloud security incidents. When there is an unexpected surge in requests for a particular file type, it may signal malicious activity such as attempts to exploit vulnerabilities, unauthorized access, or actions taken by adversaries to exfiltrate sensitive data.

Monitoring request patterns is essential for identifying potential security breaches, especially in a cloud environment where resources are shared and scaling can artificially mask unusual activity. This indicator allows responders to delve deeper into the cause of the spikes, for example, whether they are due to a legitimate increase in usage or something more sinister, like a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack aimed at saturating resources.

In contrast, while increased server downtime could suggest underlying issues, it doesn't specifically point to a security incident on its own. Similarly, high latency in data retrieval indicates performance problems, which might not be directly related to a security event. Unusual user account creation can certainly indicate potential account compromise or insider threats, but it is not as immediately aligned with external attack patterns as request volumes are. Therefore, the focus on request volume provides a clear, actionable signal indicating possible security incidents.